captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- >> live from berlin, this is the

journal. i'm brian thomas. >> and look at what is coming up in the next half hour. president obama says the tragedy must ends. collins for tighter gun control. >> . international study put in germany at the bottom of the table or pay equality among men and women and female executives remained a rarity. >> dortmund dealing another blow as the season reaches the halfway point. >> president obama has set himself and the nation a political challenge following the mass killing of schoolchildren in new 10, conn., calling for an end to the tragedies indicating he is ready to push for tighter gun control. >> congressional democrats have

also indicated they are preparing an aggressive agenda for tighter control on the ownership of weapons. the youths who killed 27 people, most of them children, was heavily armed. >> 27 enderle figures, each of them representing and a victim. >> their release the names of the victims. >> we are requesting you expect -- respect their privacy of the go through this difficult time. >> president obama struggling to find words of comfort. >> can we say we are truly doing enough to give all the children of this country the chance they deserve to live out their lives and happiness with purpose? i have been reflecting on this the last few days. if we are honest with ourselves,

the answer is no. >> it is the fourth time that he has had to face the aftermath of a killing spree. >> we cannot accept events like this as routine. are we really prepared to say that we are powerless in the face of such carnage? that the politics are too hard? are we prepared to say that such violence on our children year after year, but that is somehow the price of our freedom? >> advocates of the rights to keep and bear arms are worried he will take a tighter line with a gun control. gun owners say they should not be treated as criminals. >> somehow because i am a got -- a gun owner i am in the same boat? i'm not. >> americans remain in morning even though the storm is brewing.

wall street traders took a moment of silence to honor the victims. >> a few years ago, the worst school massacre in germany saw a teenager killed 15 people, mainly students. we spoke to the state interior minister where the killings took place and asked what his state has done to prevent weapons from falling into the wrong hands. >> we have strengthened the gun laws and regulation on possession. we have introduced legislation allowing us to carry out spot checks. that has allowed us to introduce constant monitoring. we have not as proposed but implemented legislation on a statewide level. and we have introduced new guidelines with the focus on observing the behavior for warning signs. schools and the police have cooperated on a range of preventive measures.

we have employed 100 school psychologists and we have taken on a more active role on issues concerning schools. we have really done quite a lot to prevent another event from occurring or make it possible. >> that was the minister of interior of speaking to us earlier. to afghanistan now where they have a visit in the base in the hindu kush praising the mission as an important mission and. he sang to them for his unexpected visit and they said they deserved more recognition for their role in a military that has a condition in serving a 48 force of peace internationally.

>> a german government plane making a surprise stop in afghanistan. he made the unannounced present -- visit to thank them for their service and gain a better understanding of the troubled region. he met with the troops stationed at the largest german military base in the region. they have been drawing down the forces even while expanding overall strike capabilities. several tiger helicopters have been shipped to the region of. >> afghanistan has definitely become more peaceful, but there are still threats to individual soldiers or small groups. we would not dissolve the fire department just because we went two years without a fire. >> afghan forces are taking over more responsibilities ahead of the poll out in 2014.

other areas are seeing less fighting, but civilians are still being caught in the crossfire. >> there are a lot of deaths. i would not call it a good year, but it is a step in the right direction. >> the president expressed hope that his visit would encourage an honest debate about their role in afghanistan. >> there has been no let up of the violence in afghanistan. 10 girls have died in an explosion while gathering firewood in a village near the pakistan border. it remains unclear whether roe was caused by a bomb planted by and surgeons or a land mine. >> meanwhile in the afghan capital of kabul, a car bomb injuring and killing some. it was planted near an isaf

base. in iraq, a series of bombings have killed at least 26 people. it is the second day of violence in disputed areas claimed by the central government and the autonomous kurdish region. >> to amex -- tensions have risen since the american troops withdrew from the country last year. the conflict between the kurds centers on land and oil rights. now to japan where the prime minister designate is taking a tough line after his victory at the polls saying there can be no compromise over the island is at the center of dispute with china. china has reacted with alarm. beijing declared itself "ready to work with japan" and they

expressed disquiet. >> the former prime minister vowed to put the japanese economy back on track after years of deflation made worse by a soaring currency that has squeezed japanese exporters. >> a landslide victory for the conservative ldp party. voters are putting their trust in his promise to get the economy back on track. >> the mission we have been given is to beat inflation and deal with the high yen and wall dealing with the economy and working to create more jobs. >> many voters were critical over the handling of the devastating earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear disaster. they say it was last eight support rather than a rejection of the outgoing premier. >> politics is all about the

results. we have to take responsibility. the cause of this major defeat lies with me, as the leader of this party. i hereby take these results seriously and i will resign as the leader of the democratic party in japan. what's the future of the japanese power plants was not a big issue in the race. the future prime minister is a staunch supporter of nuclear power. in his view, it would be disastrous for the fraud trial japanese economy. >> and now on to market news. germany also heard ld the japane results. >> the election outcome was driving the frankfurt stock market because he promised more stimulus measures and more cheap money from the central bank, but this policy also has a very

negative side. the debt burden will be growing and one day they will have to pay very high price in return. the german market closing barely unchanged. deutsche bank causing outrage and worrying investors after complaining about the massive police raid last week to the premier of the state. this could weaken his position here. >> we will stay for a closer look at monday'sd numbers. ax finishing slightly higher. eurostoxx doown. the dow 13,198 and the euro is trading pretty much flat. $1.3162. in a report on gender equality shows women still earn much less than men on average.

the 2012 global gender gap report by the organization for economic cooperation and development shows among developed countries, men earn 16% more than women in similar jobs. >> it shows women are less likely to make it to the top of the career ladder and as their earnings rarely recover after they become mothers and they're more likely to spend their final years in poverty. >> something of a rarity in germany, and mother of two and an engineer who works full-time in a senior management position. that's not something many german women to according to a study by the organization of economic cooperation and development, a situation reflected in what women are compared to men. on average, women in the 34 countries earn 16% last. in germany, the difference is even greater with women earning 22% less but in germany in last

place among european countries. the gender gap in pay is smallest in greece and norway. the researchers say one reason for the gender gap as many women work in poorly paid part-time jobs. that also affect retirement pensions. the gender gap among retirees is bigger in germany than in any other developed country. one possible solution, experts say, is more child care opportunities. she left her career -- stayed with it because of child care options offered by her company. >> calling for nationwide protests next week following the first round of voting on the new constitution in germany -- in egypt. 56% voted in favor of the draft.

>> they are complaining of numerous voting irregularities and are declaring every count. they say it paves the way for islamic law and as a threat to the christian minority as well as civil rights. official referendum results will only be known after a second round of voting next weekend. the german government has expressed concern over the situation in egypt. >> the minister for development said an unstable egypt would be a security risk for the entire region. he said, "the danger of a return to the dictatorial region of the ousted president mubarak, but simply with different people." let's go now live to our chief political correspondent for more. melinda, how concerned are german leaders are about where mohamed morsi and the is bomuslm

brotherhood are taking the country? >> his ministry is suspending talks on for the development aid for now. there suspending discussions and negotiations on debt relief which have would have amounted to 240 million euro. another government spokesperson said president morsi is the first democratically elected president and we have to deal with him. we're still planning on him visiting a berlin at the end of january. they said basically, what they would be looking for is to be assured that egypt will respect the rule of law, freedom of speech, human rights. in this case, they would still be maintained. relations with the government. >> melinda, thank you. we will be right out with more.

>> demonstrators throwing stones at the acting president of

tunisia. that incident cut short a ceremony marking the second anniversary of the revolution. >> holdings speeches to commemorate. >> he set himself on fire in an act of protest and it signified weeks of protest forcing out the country's dictator. for more on the anniversary in tunisia, on the ground there reporting since the beginning of what is now called the era of the spring and joining us near the bolivian border. sara, his death is seen as the deaf that inspired revolution in tunisia. is there a sense of accomplishment for this appointment? >> people are proud in tunisia to have been the first country in the region to topple their

dictator. at the same time, they're disappointed. they're not meeting their social and economic demands. it is going to take more than a few years, but they are frustrated. >> there has been some progress. before he was toppled, you personally had to accord a pseudonym for your safety. you can now use your real name. how would you describe the situation there for journalists? >> conditions have improved significantly. it has become a lot more diverse since the revolution. we can report freely and the freedom of speech and of the press remains so far. what's in general, based on how

far to an asian house,, what is your predictions for the future? >> tunisia's going through very difficult time at the moment. there are writing a new tourism is drawing back as well. it is having an economic crisis leading to more social unrest and a number of uprisings over the couple of months. it may lead to more unrest and diplomatic change due to a lack of stability. >> thank you very much. >> here in germany, it is being called a breakthrough towards integrating muslims in the country, a teaching is a long in public schools in the german language. >> legal technicalities and a lack of qualified staff have led

to a range of stopgap solutions including antique -- teaching in turkish, for many their second language. what's the most popular state -- populous state has started a pilot program. >> if it succeeds, it could become the model for the entire nation. >> fourth graders in western germany, as long as on the curriculum. -- islam is on the curriculum. >> who would like to tell me the five pillars of islam? please in german. "students usually talk about the religion in arabic for turkish. now it is getting a german touch and its different from how it is done at the mosque. klutz the letters are written in arabic. it's really tough. >> we are only allowed to read and learn by rote.

>> and here? >> we can ask all the questions we want. the focus is on discussing questioning rather than just repeating. it is his job to help the children understand islam. a graduate of islamic theology, he is now on the payroll of the german state. >> for many of the students come into the first time they have explored their faith in german. >> these kids are growing up here. they go to school year. and they will work in this country later. this will give them a chance to talk about their religion and their culture with other people, with non-muslim germans, and to enter in a dialogue.

>> it took many pilot projects to get this far. they are pioneering the nose lessons of the first german state. muslim families have pushed for the move open for a better place in german society. there have been living here for decades. most families arrived in the 1960's coming as cheap labor and was planning to leave again. they formed their own communities practicing their faith behind closed doors. that changed with the opening of this mosque. the house of worship with a community center and a place where all are welcome. he plays an active role in the biggest mosque. worshipers here have plenty of challenges to over, like trying to fit five prayers in a busy schedule were women trying to pursue a career in a headscarf.

although the tenants are the same the world over -- tenets are the same, they say the christian tradition also has an influence on the riverdale lives. >> there is no escaping it in daily life. our children to take place in the st. martin's day festival and there are plenty of families i hardly see all year and then bump into up the christmas market. >> that all seems a long way away at evening prayer. the imam is from turkey and will only be here for a few years. he speaks little german and have little insight into german society, but that will also change. it is now possible to study islamic theology in germany and become an imam, so perhaps one day they will preach in german.

>> we are joined now by a social sciences from humboldt. first of all, is this program a step in the right direction? >> we can discuss it like this, but we can also discuss it as a quite practical program. there are 4 million in germany, half of them are already born here, german by nationality. they do not speak the languages of their parent very well, it is very normal to teach them their religion in their mother tongue right now. maybe it is more a right step in the integration progress or germany, which has to learn to deal with its diversity. >> do you think there is a european form of islam? >> there is because there are european muslims. we have centers of european as

lawmakers fought in denmark, london, berlin. as long has always been some kind of hybrid process adapting to its cultural surrounding. in senegal it is different to tehran and spain. >> how different is it outside of europe in the wider arab world, the middle east? >> they are more accepted outside of europe because europe is a shocking and islamic bloc because there's a need to find a european identity, especially now in the crisis. >> where do you see this going? do you see the creation of a broader european islamic bloc? >> islam house oe been adapted to its cultural surroundings and we can see european islam coming up in a lot of centers in europe. >> his specialist in the dialogue between the islamic

world and the west, thank you. onto soccer now. dortmund with another victory under their belts helping the reigning champions close in on the league leaders. their season has been punctuated by ups and downs, but on sunday and, they notched up another important victory in their title defense. >> warring on from the touch line, the caretaker urging his to stay compact. breached by mario. still, he did not play. fearing relegation. moments later, sven scoring a deserved equalizer. in the second half, again with the breakthrough gift. and the easiest of finishes. they were outclassed and he made

it 3-1 with his 10th goal of the season. the delusion goes on. -- the deluge goes on. >> in sunday, bremen it would work three times before hitting a late goal. nuremburg scoring for an excellent counterattack. making that goal, but the luck did not deserve them entirely. appearing to be offside when he equalized with only two minutes left on the clock but the flag stayed aon, 1 all. what is considered one of the greatest american novel, but not as a european makeover. and new feature-length version of "the adventures of huckleberry finn" has premiered. >> it is a follow-up to "the adventures of tom sawyer" that

was released last year. they want to capture the original look and feel of the story despite shooting thousands of kilometers away from the deep south. in germany and romania. what's the mississippi in romania. >> things for joining us.